I also have the brie, also really yummy but I have no clue what to actually do with it. I've never actually had dairy brie, so not only do I not know how it compares (which isn't a bad thing) but I don't have the slightest clue what to do with it the two wheels I have now. I"m thinking I'll do some tofurkey and apple sandwiches for lunch? Any other suggestions?

I'm working on a batch of brie right now - hoping to do one of my favorites from my past life:

- lay out a large large sheet of puff pastry on a sheet pan lined with parchment or a silpat - set the round of brie on the pastry - spread your favorite sweet jam all over the top of the brie - fold dough over the top, cutting off the excess - drizzle with maple syrup and put a handful of brown sugar on top - bake at 350F until the pastry is golden brown (about 25 to 30 minutes) - let it cool - while you're opening a bottle of wine, of course :) - serve with crackers and fruit slices - apple, pear, grapes, whatever

Just a tip for the Europeans out there regarding the kappa carrageenan. Agar and xanthan are available in some stores in my area but I had no luck with carrageenan, it's not even sold online in my whole country. So I found a UK online shop selling it which ships to other European countries at an affordable rate: http://www.ceraonuk.comI ordered one 100 gram (approx. 3.5oz) package, I wonder if I should have ordered more!

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

And... I think I did ruin it. I was waiting for it to become glossy and pull away from the sides of the pan and suddenly it was sort of gritty and oil was separating :( Did I kill it? It tasted so good, this is very disappointing.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

To substitute agar, what you need to do is first dissolve that by boiling it in water. For half the recipe, you'll need a half cup of water and 4 teaspoons of agar powder. Boil first (use a lid to prevent evaporation), then whisk the gruyere in there. Once it's incorporated, you can transfer it to a mold. You don't need to keep cooking it. Now, the trick to getting it hard is to age it. Find a really cool place, less than 60 degrees, or your fridge. Wrap it in brine-soaked cheesecloth and let it dry out for a couple of weeks or longer.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

To substitute agar, what you need to do is first dissolve that by boiling it in water. For half the recipe, you'll need a half cup of water and 4 teaspoons of agar powder. Boil first (use a lid to prevent evaporation), then whisk the gruyere in there. Once it's incorporated, you can transfer it to a mold. You don't need to keep cooking it. Now, the trick to getting it hard is to age it. Find a really cool place, less than 60 degrees, or your fridge. Wrap it in brine-soaked cheesecloth and let it dry out for a couple of weeks or longer.

I wish I had seen this before I tried the directions from the book :(I did only do half, luckily. I spread the soft gruyere on bread this morning with apples and it was amazing.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

And... I think I did ruin it. I was waiting for it to become glossy and pull away from the sides of the pan and suddenly it was sort of gritty and oil was separating :( Did I kill it? It tasted so good, this is very disappointing.

Maybe try using the 'ruined' cheese blended into a sauce or dip. I think i would try blending it up with a heap of caramelized onions, and Miyokos cream cheese, sour cream, and/or yoghurt (or yoghurt cheese)

I overcooked the sharp cheddar when i made it so the oil separated and was kinda oozing out even when it cooled. So i kept it loosely wrapped in paper towel and parchment in the fridge as it aged, and changed the paper when it got oily. Not sure how long it took for it to stop oozing oil, but it did stop.

For those of you having trouble with rejuvelac, a cheese making supply company that carries my book has come up with a remarkable and easy way to make it using malted grains. Who would have thought! Here's a link to their page (scroll down) and they'll lead you through making an easy rejuvelac that bypasses the sprouting process. http://www.cheesemaking.com/VeganChz.html

i have made some good meltable mozzarella with home-made coconut cream yogurt (super rich). the mozzarella was great in lasagne, though by itself it was not nearly as good as other cheeses from the book (parm, provolone, cheddar), but it's the only meltable cheese i've made. i don't like soy yogurt but i've loved the cheeses i've made with soy yogurt. i can post the recipe for the coconut cream yogurt if you're interested.

kasiakoz wrote:

Sorry if this has already been discussed, didn't want to read through the whole thread - has anyone had success making any of the meltable cheese with non-soy yogurt?

Sorry if this has already been discussed, didn't want to read through the whole thread - has anyone had success making any of the meltable cheese with non-soy yogurt?

edited because i didn't read properly...i've used almond and coconut yogurt to make the yogurt in the book, but not for any of the cheeses.

Did you also use non-soy milk to make the yogurt? I seem to have a soy sensitivity so am avoiding it.

I made the parmesan with yogurt i made with a combination of homemade almond, sunflower, oat and sesame milks, with some cashews blended in like in the book. I do need to add a bit of starch as a thickener. Almond milk alone will work fine, i just used that combo cause it's what i had.

It works out pretty cheap If you make your own milk, and i recall, when i researched it (nearly a year ago now) peoples on the interwebs seemed to have more success with homemade milks.

I add about a tablespoon of sugar per litre, to feed bacterias as there is no lactose.

Oh, and the parmesan turned out awesome, but having not made it with soy yoghurt i cannot compare.

I also deviated from the recipe in a couple of other ways. I added a wee bit of tahini, which i reckon is delicious in more strongly flavoured cheeses such as cheddars. And, i'm in Australia so it's getting seriously hot, humid and full of bugs, so air drying the usual way is not possible. Nor can i fit a large plastic container in my fridge for slower aging, as Miyoko suggested in a previous post, as it's too stuffed full of various homemade fermented foodstuffs : )

So i kickstarted the drying in the dehydrator, then transferred to the fridge for some slower aging.My parmesan is really delicious, and though i am sure it is inferior to when it is made the proper way, i'm certain i will do it this way again until autumn comes, as it is so yummy and economical, too.

Anyway, back to the yoghurt question. I think if the parmesan can be made with non-soy yoghurt, all the recipes should work well with it. If your yoghurt seems too runny, you could strain it for a short time (even when unstrained yoghurt is called for).

I've found that even really runny yoghurt can be strained by using either more layers of cloth to strain through or by using cloth with a closer weave. You may need to drain it longer or else change to a cloth with a more open-weave to get it as thick as you want.

i have made some good meltable mozzarella with home-made coconut cream yogurt (super rich). the mozzarella was great in lasagne, though by itself it was not nearly as good as other cheeses from the book (parm, provolone, cheddar), but it's the only meltable cheese i've made. i don't like soy yogurt but i've loved the cheeses i've made with soy yogurt. i can post the recipe for the coconut cream yogurt if you're interested.

kasiakoz wrote:

Sorry if this has already been discussed, didn't want to read through the whole thread - has anyone had success making any of the meltable cheese with non-soy yogurt?

Oh, and the parmesan turned out awesome, but having not made it with soy yoghurt i cannot compare.

I also deviated from the recipe in a couple of other ways. I added a wee bit of tahini, which i reckon is delicious in more strongly flavoured cheeses such as cheddars. And, i'm in Australia so it's getting seriously hot, humid and full of bugs, so air drying the usual way is not possible. Nor can i fit a large plastic container in my fridge for slower aging, as Miyoko suggested in a previous post, as it's too stuffed full of various homemade fermented foodstuffs : )

So i kickstarted the drying in the dehydrator, then transferred to the fridge for some slower aging.My parmesan is really delicious, and though i am sure it is inferior to when it is made the proper way, i'm certain i will do it this way again until autumn comes, as it is so yummy and economical, too.

Anyway, back to the yoghurt question. I think if the parmesan can be made with non-soy yoghurt, all the recipes should work well with it. If your yoghurt seems too runny, you could strain it for a short time (even when unstrained yoghurt is called for).

I've found that even really runny yoghurt can be strained by using either more layers of cloth to strain through or by using cloth with a closer weave. You may need to drain it longer or else change to a cloth with a more open-weave to get it as thick as you want.

I've wondered if anyone had tried a dehydrator. I don't have one myself, but thought of borrowing one to exprriment.

Though for AVC recipes, i think they would be best doing the aging/ drying as written. Miyoko wrote this in a previous post -

miyokoschinner wrote:

I don't have a dehydrator - my oven works as one (goes down to 100). I know some raw foodists use their dehydrators to make cheese and create a "rind" in about 24 hours, but my experience is that the cheese just gets tangy fast, and doesn't develop the other more complex flavors. That's why real dairy cheese is aged. There's something to be said for slow food. I tried the Gouda in there, and it just got a crust and became tangy, but didn't develop the creamy, sliceable interior with the deeper flavors. Same with several other cheeses. But it works great for making yogurt, which is something that is supposed to be ready in a few hours.

I've played around with various mixtures, using Miyokos recipes as a basis, generally so i can use stuff that needs using. Often i'll put part of these mixtures in the dehydrator, after culturing, to harden them a bit and see what happens, usually they are really tasty, but it's not really a substitute for aging.

Recently i added some Soy nuts i found in the freezer to one of my concoctions. After culturing and refrigerating it was still a bit too soy nutty. I tried smearing some thinly and completely dehydrating, and it made a really tasty parmesan type thing to crumble over stuff.

Interesting...tapioca starch doesn't have a taste in my opinion. Wondering if it's different in different locales.

I did some googling, and am undecided as to whether i think It's dependent on brand or whether it's just a random thing where some people get this aftertaste. I'm generally pretty unfussy. There are a few kinds of manufactured biscuits in these parts that use tapioca, and they have the same unpleasant taste.

Anyway the brand of tapioca i've tried and don't like is the thai elephant brand. I noticed another brand at my local vietnamese grocery the other day, so maybe i'll try that. And if that's no good i'll have to make a lot of momigami.

_rootVeg wrote:

I am expecting a delivery of Ultratex (a very bland, cold water swelling tapioca starch from Willpowder) tomorrow and will be playing with it this weekend with some yoghurt cheddar that is aging on the counter right now - which is developing an excellent flavor.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

To substitute agar, what you need to do is first dissolve that by boiling it in water. For half the recipe, you'll need a half cup of water and 4 teaspoons of agar powder. Boil first (use a lid to prevent evaporation), then whisk the gruyere in there. Once it's incorporated, you can transfer it to a mold. You don't need to keep cooking it. Now, the trick to getting it hard is to age it. Find a really cool place, less than 60 degrees, or your fridge. Wrap it in brine-soaked cheesecloth and let it dry out for a couple of weeks or longer.

Miyoko, do you need to do the same with carrageenan? I added the carrageenan directly to the "cheese" as per recipe and the same as above happened to me, it curdled and separated.

My gruyere has been culturing for about 24 hours and it tastes freakishly amazing. I think I want to make it hard and slicable, but am a little scared to ruin it. I only have agar... maybe I will do half and keep the other half soft.

To substitute agar, what you need to do is first dissolve that by boiling it in water. For half the recipe, you'll need a half cup of water and 4 teaspoons of agar powder. Boil first (use a lid to prevent evaporation), then whisk the gruyere in there. Once it's incorporated, you can transfer it to a mold. You don't need to keep cooking it. Now, the trick to getting it hard is to age it. Find a really cool place, less than 60 degrees, or your fridge. Wrap it in brine-soaked cheesecloth and let it dry out for a couple of weeks or longer.

Miyoko, do you need to do the same with carrageenan? I added the carrageenan directly to the "cheese" as per recipe and the same as above happened to me, it curdled and separated.

No, you don't need to do that to carrageenan. Curdling and separating means you cooked it too long.

I'm a newbie to the PPK forums, so please forgive any ignorant mistakes I happen to make. :)

I've had "Artisan Vegan Cheese" for awhile now and have just recently gotten all the ingredients together to begin experimenting. I made the chevre cheese and loooooved it. But now I'm dying for some cheesy casseroles and wanted to move onto the meltable cheeses. I've been trying desperately to culture yogurt for those recipes, to no avail. It just will not set up and I thought maybe I was getting the milk too warm, so bought a candy thermometer.

Last night was my most recent attempt. I got the creamy cashew mixture and the almond milk to exactly 110 degrees before adding the yogurt, put it in jars, then wrapped them up in dishtowels to help insulate them. But this morning it was still liquid. Not set at all. So I'm starting to wonder if the ambient temperature in my house is too cool (we keep it around 75 during the winter).

I've been using Silk soy yogurt, and it says the cultures are live and active, but it is several days beyond the "best by" date at this point. Is it possible the bacteria have started to die? I certainly hope not, because our closest source of vegan yogurt is about 2 hours away...we live in the boondocks. So I'm hoping to glean some advice from you cheese pros before I run out of yogurt (and patience). ;)

I have had no problem at all with yogurt setting up and the only difference between what you seem to be doing and what i seem to be doing is that I put my yogurt in a warm over (not hot, i turn it on for a couple of minutes and make sure it's no warmer than 110. hope that helps!

ReadingVegan wrote:

Hi, everyone!

I'm a newbie to the PPK forums, so please forgive any ignorant mistakes I happen to make. :)

I've had "Artisan Vegan Cheese" for awhile now and have just recently gotten all the ingredients together to begin experimenting. I made the chevre cheese and loooooved it. But now I'm dying for some cheesy casseroles and wanted to move onto the meltable cheeses. I've been trying desperately to culture yogurt for those recipes, to no avail. It just will not set up and I thought maybe I was getting the milk too warm, so bought a candy thermometer.

Last night was my most recent attempt. I got the creamy cashew mixture and the almond milk to exactly 110 degrees before adding the yogurt, put it in jars, then wrapped them up in dishtowels to help insulate them. But this morning it was still liquid. Not set at all. So I'm starting to wonder if the ambient temperature in my house is too cool (we keep it around 75 during the winter).

I've been using Silk soy yogurt, and it says the cultures are live and active, but it is several days beyond the "best by" date at this point. Is it possible the bacteria have started to die? I certainly hope not, because our closest source of vegan yogurt is about 2 hours away...we live in the boondocks. So I'm hoping to glean some advice from you cheese pros before I run out of yogurt (and patience). ;)

Thanks for such a prompt response! I had wondered about putting the jars in the oven, but our oven won't go any lower than 170. Could I set it at 170 and leave the door halfway open? I should probably invest in an oven thermometer next time I'm at the store...

that's what i do RV, i just leave it open until the temp is at 110 them i close everything up in there. because my oven thermometer is for shiitake, i just go by feel - when it feels about the same temp as the yogurt i shut the door with the yogurt in there to culture. i leave it in overnight so i don't know exactly how long it takes to set up. gooood luck!

ReadingVegan wrote:

Hi Lululuv!

Thanks for such a prompt response! I had wondered about putting the jars in the oven, but our oven won't go any lower than 170. Could I set it at 170 and leave the door halfway open? I should probably invest in an oven thermometer next time I'm at the store...